Amazon.com Inc.'s proposed Kenosha distribution center may be a year from opening, but the online retailer plans to begin collecting sales taxes from Wisconsin residents this fall.

Amazon has told the state Department of Revenue it will obtain a Wisconsin seller's permit by Nov. 1 and will then begin collecting Wisconsin sales taxes on sales to state residents, said Laurel Patrick, the department's communications director.

Those sales tax collections are tied to Amazon's plans "to establish a physical presence in Wisconsin," Patrick said Thursday.

She's referring to the proposed distribution center, with just over 1 million square feet and 1,100 full-time employees, that Amazon plans to operate in Kenosha. That facility will be built north of 38th St./Highway N and east of I-94.

Seattle-based Amazon isn't required to collect sales taxes from Wisconsin residents because it doesn't have a physical presence in Wisconsin, Patrick said. The distribution center changes that situation, she said.

Amazon hasn't returned calls and emails seeking information about its planned Kenosha facility, which hasn't yet been formally announced.

However, the Kenosha Common Council on Monday approved a conditional use permit for the facility and city financing help for the project.

New York-based KTR Capital Partners, which will develop the building and lease it to Amazon, wants to begin construction as soon as possible and have it open by the fall of 2014, said Ald. Jesse Downing, whose district includes the site.

Mayor Keith Bosman said the facility will likely have more than 1,100 full-time employees. The average wage will be just over $13 an hour for around 850 employees who fulfill orders for Amazon customers, he said.

The remaining 250 employees will include technicians, computer programmers and managers, earning annual salaries ranging from around $50,000 to $250,000, Bosman said. The facility will likely employ people within a 20- to 25-mile radius, he said.

Kenosha will provide up to $18.1 million to help finance roads, sewers and other public improvements tied to the facility, which will have an estimated assessed value of $170 million, Bosman said. The distribution center's new property taxes will repay the city funds through a tax incremental financing district.

Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. spokesman Mark Maley declined to comment on whether Amazon's plan to collect sales taxes was a condition sought by officials in return for possible state financing help with the Kenosha facility. The agency doesn't comment on pending or possible deals, he said.

Even without the Kenosha distribution center, Amazon customers in Wisconsin and other states are facing the prospect of having sales taxes added to their purchases because of legislation pending in Congress.

Known as the Marketplace Fairness Act, it gives states the authority to require online and catalog retailers to collect sales taxes. The Senate passed the act in May, but the House of Representatives hasn't yet acted on it.

That list has grown in recent years as Amazon has added more offices, customer service centers and distribution centers.

States that have such Amazon facilities, but where the company isn't collecting sales taxes, are Delaware, Indiana, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia.

States lost a total of $23 billion last year because they couldn't collect taxes on out-of-state sales, according to a study done for the National Conference of State Legislatures. About half of that was lost from Internet sales, half from purchases made through catalogs, mail orders and telephone orders, the study said.

The Wisconsin Department of Revenue has estimated the new sales tax rules from the national legislation would result in about $95 million for the state when fully implemented in fiscal year 2015.

By law, states can require retailers to collect sales taxes only if the store has a physical presence in the state. That means big retailers with stores all over the country, such as Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Target and Kohl's, collect sales taxes when they sell goods over the Internet. But online retailers such as eBay and Amazon don't have to collect sales taxes, except in states where they have offices or distribution centers.

As a result, many online sales are tax-free, giving Internet retailers an advantage over brick-and-mortar stores.

Patrick Marley of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.